Bureaucracy slowing emergency jobless claims

Colorado labor department official acknowledges delays but says lengthy wait times are unusual.

9:49 PM,
Oct. 27, 2012

Tina Van Rikxoord of Fort Collins, looks for jobs on her lap top in the Fort Collins LIbrary Friday Oct. 26, 2012. She has been unemployed since April, despite a strong work history and holding an MBA. Her standard unemployment benefits expired in August, and she qualified for emergency unemployment benefits, But the claims process has dragged out and she has been without a check for two months, exhausting her retirement and savings.

Written by

Patrick Malone
PatrickMalone@coloradoan.com

Desperate pleas to her landlord, utilities and local charities have kept Tina VanRikxoord from being in the dark or on the street.

Her graduate degree and fluency in three languages failed to shield her from the ravages of the Great Recession, and as she stands on the edge of a personal financial cliff, rugged layers of bureaucracy obscure a soft landing in society's safety net.

Two months have passed since she applied for emergency unemployment benefits, and she has been told not to expect a cent before Nov. 7. To get by in the meantime, VanRikxoord depleted her personal savings and retirement ...